A lot of great things happen in this business and we often have cause to celebrate. We had good cause in mid-July when we announced the Royal Caribbean International 2008 Environmental Ship of the Year. The announcement came in the form of a conference call to the fleet. It’s a curious experience to be the one who says “may I have the envelope please” to Jamie Sweeting, our VP, Environmental Stewardship.
The really amazing thing is how the ships year after year continue to find new and innovative ways to take care of the environment. Their dedication to do continuous improvement is inspiring.
The winning ship for 2008 is Liberty of the Seas. The selection panel, a group of environmental experts from outside the company, noted a wide variety of initiatives that distinguished Liberty of the Seas last year. A few examples:
- implementation of a new waste handling system that has nearly eliminated cutlery from the throwaway bins, reducing potential damage to the vacuum system components
- creation of a video for guests on energy savings
- low usage of water throughout the year and development of a water awareness training and educational program for the crew
- recycling of wine corks which are landed to a company that produces building materials from recycled products. The corks are recycled into tiles for floors and walls
- installation of a wind turbine to power a television inside of Adventure Ocean
In addition to all of the above, Liberty of the Seas performed exceptionally well throughout the year on the rigorous audits that all our ships undergo.
Congratulations to Liberty of the Seas as well as the runner up Independence of the Seas and third place winner Jewel of the Seas.
CONGRATULATIONS TO THE LIBERTY OF THE SEAS!!!!
What great news… and well deserved! We have been fortunate to cruise on the Liberty several times and have noted many times how conscientious the Officer Staff and crew are in their many duties, including taking care of “our” environment. Thank you Liberty and RCCL for being a “good citizen” on planet earth.
Thank you for keeping us informed on the progress of things on RCCL. But what about answering the concerns posted relating to your other blog’s? Under Crown & Anchor there are 115 posting from your LOYAL CRUISERS that have gone unanswered. They are what made this company what it is. Dont they deserve a response from you?
If you really want to improve the environment – please do not allow smoking on the balconies of the ship. People throw their nasty butts (into the water) – not too mention the nasty second hand smoke. Smoking is bad for your health and bad for the health of non smokers. Also when you say that your rooms are no smoking – that should cover the whole room including the balcony. If smokers want to ruin their health then they should be put into a coral and the can blow smoke on each other.
I am glad to see your doing the best you can for the enviroment. Keep up the good work.
In the casino I see from room for inprovement. The paper is a ideal method of controlling germs but it is probably expensive to make all slots paper receipt friendly. I suggest however the use of plastic buckets rather than paper. The paper buckets get dingy quicker and can’t be cleaned. Plastic could be washed every night and at least sterilized. Just a thought
Tom Young